Four powerful readings are given to us on this Sunday. They complement each other and help us in our liturgical celebration to praise God for the graces of Divine Providence and its effectiveness in our lives. We build upon the readings through our trust in God’s word and through love and honesty in our relationships.

Both the reading from Jeremiah and the Psalm speak of a prenatal calling of the prophet and the psalmist. Could it be that Jeremiah wrote the psalm? It seems possible from it content and its similar ideas. Jeremiah’s call to be a prophet is a painful one. In many respects it is similar to what Jesus undergoes in the contrasts found in the way people and religious leaders accept or do not accept his messages of truth. The truth in prophesy always challenges and often hurts the listener who must have a change of heart and mind, a metanoia.

Our reading of Paul’s great hymn on love (Agape: means totally unselfish love) may lead us to take each of its verses and make it quite personal asking ourselves the question: “Am I kind, am I not jealous, rude, or controlling, etc. This is an healthy examination of conscience and should help us face the truth about ourselves in our dealings and relationships with others. Do we really love with the love of God in our hearts? Or are we selfish in our loves? Hard questions that get to the heart of the matter in the spiritual life.

Fr. Faley, T.O.R. says, “To speak the truth in love is often a difficult task. The truth hurts. But the truth given and received; loving and caring, as Paul teaches is the bedrock foundation of the Christian community. Absence of love is the heart of sin.”

In the Gospel we learn that Jesus’ love is universal. He includes the Syrian general, and the woman from Sidon who are mentioned in the Scriptures he read and loved.

About Author

Father Bertrand Buby, S.M. obtained his licentiate in Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute and his doctorate in Marian Theology from the International Marian Research Institute at the University of Dayton and is professor emeritus for the Religious Studies Department of the University of Dayton. He has taught Scripture and Marian theology and presently teaches Scripture at the Inernational Marian Institute (I.M.R.I). He is the author of the trilogy MARY OF GALILEE, and also of Mary Faithful Disciple, With a Listening Heart (Pslam commentary), a commentary on the Book of Revelation. Fr. Buby was past president of the Mariological Society of America and has written articles for the marian journal called Marian Studies. He is a member of the Pontifical International Marian Academy (P.A.M.I.) and lives with ten other Marianists near the University of Dayton. Vist marypage.org. for more information.

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